Inserter systems, such as those applicable for use with the present invention, are typically used by organizations such as banks, insurance companies and utility companies for producing a large volume of specific mailings where the contents of each mail item are directed to a particular addressee. Also, other organizations, such as direct mailers, use inserts for producing a large volume of generic mailings where the contents of each mail item are substantially identical for each addressee. Examples of such inserter systems are the 8 series, 9 series, and APS™ inserter systems available from Pitney Bowes Inc. of Stamford Conn.
In many respects, the typical inserter system resembles a manufacturing assembly line. Sheets and other raw materials (other sheets, enclosures, and envelopes) enter the inserter system as inputs. Then, a variety of modules or workstations in the inserter system work cooperatively to process the sheets until a finished mail piece is produced. The exact configuration of each inserter system depends upon the needs of each particular customer or installation.
Typically, inserter systems prepare mail pieces by gathering collations of documents on a conveyor. The collations are then transported on the conveyor to an insertion station where they are automatically stuffed into envelopes. After being stuffed with the collations, the envelopes are removed from the insertion station for further processing. Such further processing may include automated closing and sealing the envelope flap, weighing the envelope, applying postage to the envelope, and finally sorting and stacking the envelopes.
The input stages of a typical inserter system are depicted in FIG. 1. At the input end of the inserter system, rolls or stacks of continuous printed documents, called a “web,” are fed into the inserter system by a web feeder 100. The continuous web must be separated into individual document pages. This separation is typically carried out by a web cutter 200 that cuts the continuous web into individual document pages. Downstream of the web cutter 200, a right angle turn 300 may be used to reorient the documents, and/or to meet the inserter user's floor space requirements.
The cut pages must subsequently be accumulated into collations corresponding to the multi-page documents to be included in individual mail pieces. This gathering of related document pages occurs in the accumulator module 400 where individual pages are stacked on top of one another.
The control system for the inserter senses markings on the individual pages to determine what pages are to be collated together in the accumulator module 400. In a typical inserter application, mail pieces may include varying number of pages to be accumulated. When a document accumulation is complete, then the accumulation is discharged as a unit from the accumulator 400.
Downstream of the accumulator 400, a folder 500 typically folds the accumulation of documents to fit in the desired envelopes. To allow the same inserter system to be used with different sized mailings, the folder 500 can typically be adjusted to make different sized folds on different sized paper.
Downstream of the folder 500, a buffer transport 600 transports and stores accumulated and folded documents in series in preparation for transferring the documents to the synchronous inserter chassis 700. By lining up a backlog of documents in the buffer 600, the asynchronous nature of the upstream accumulator 400 will have less impact on the synchronous inserter chassis 700. On the inserter chassis 700 inserts are added to the folded accumulation prior to insertion into an envelope at a later module.
FIG. 2 shows more details of an input portion of an inserter system. For purposes of the present invention it is not important whether a particular functionality be included in one module or another, and the description of one module having a certain functionality is exemplary. A web 120 is drawn into the inserter input subsystem. Methods for transporting the web are known and may include rollers, or tractors pulling on holes along a perforated strip at the edges of the web. The web 120 is split into two side-by-side portions by a cutting device 11. Cutting device 11 may be a stationary knife or a rotating cutting disc, or any other cutting device known in the art.
Sensors 12 and 13 scan a mark or code printed on the web 120. The mark or code identify which mail piece that particular portion of web 120 belongs to, and provides instructions for processing and assembling the mail pieces. In addition to using the scanned information for providing assembling instructions, the scanning process is useful for tracking the documents' progress through the mail piece assembly process. Once the location of a document is known based on a sensor reading, the document's position may be tracked throughout the system by monitoring the displacement of the transport system. In particular, encoders may be incorporated in the transport systems to give a reliable measurement of displacements that have occurred since a document was at a certain location.
After the web 120 has been split into at least two portions, the web is then cut into individual sheets by cutter 21. The cut is made across the web, transverse to the direction of transport. Downstream of the cutter 21 the individual cut sheets are transported to the right angle turn 30 portion of the system.
Right angle turn devices 30 are known in the art and will not be described in detail here. However, and exemplary right angle turn will comprise turn bars 32 and 33. Of the two paper paths formed by the right angle turn 30, turn bar 33 forms an inner paper path for transporting sheet 1. Turn bar 32 forms a longer outer paper path on which sheet 2 travels.
Because sheets 1 have a shorter path through the right angle turn 30, a lead edge of sheet 1 will be in front of a lead edge of sheet 2 downstream of the right angle turn 30. Also, the turn bars 32 and 33 may be arranged such that sheet 2 will lay on top of sheet 1 downstream of the right angle turn, thus forming a shingled arrangement.
In a feed cycle, the paper is advanced past the blade of the guillotine cutter 21 by a distance equal to the length of the cut sheet and is stopped. In a cut cycle, the blade 21 lowers to shear off the sheet of paper, and then withdraws from the paper. As soon as the blade 21 withdraws from the paper path, the next feed cycle begins. The feed and cut cycles are carried out in such an alternate fashion over the entire operation.
Thus, it can be seen in this right handed turn arrangement of FIG. 2 that in order to keep the sheets in the proper sequence, i.e. sheets 1 leading sheet 2, it is important for sheet 1 (and subsequent odd numbered sheets) to enter the right angle turn module 30 on the right side. The cutter 21 depicted in FIG. 2 would typically be a right to left guillotine cutter, whereby right sheets can be cut and released before the left sheets are cut.
If the lead sheet 1 were positioned on the left side, as depicted in FIG. 3, then using prior art techniques a left handed right angle turn module 30 would have to be substituted. The arrangement shown in FIG. 3, would be unacceptable using prior art techniques.